Philadelphia Phillies Rumors
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 9, 2009 at 7:57pm CST]
7:56pm: Stark is now reporting that Pedro has changed his mind and will throw for the Phillies a second time on Friday at 1pm. 7:22pm: A source has told Jayson Stark that the Phillies have requested to see Pedro throw a second time "to see how his arm responds," but that Pedro has refused. The source told Stark that Pedro feels the Phillies "have enough information to make a decision from his simulated game Tuesday and shouldn't need him to throw again." 7:18pm: Here is Todd Zolecki's summary of the Pedro situation. 5:45pm: The AP has some quotes from Pedro...
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By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 9, 2009 at 2:17pm CST]
The Blue Jays want top talent in exchange for Roy Halladay, but we heard yesterday that the Phillies have some untouchable players, perhaps Kyle Drabek. Here's what the Cards and Mets are saying about their top prospects: Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post Dispatch confirms that John Mozeliak will call the Blue Jays, but suggests some in the organization would not consider dealing Brett Wallace, who the Jays wanted in last year's draft. Baseball America ranks Wallace as the 21st best prospect in baseball and the Cards' only prospect in the top 50. Jon Heyman of SI.com says the...
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By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 9, 2009 at 11:10am CST]
All of this morning's Roy Halladay rumors: Could the Red Sox make a play for Halladay? Sure, but Tony Massarotti of the Boston Globe says "they won't." Nick Cafardo of the Globe says the Red Sox hadn't inquired about Halladay as of late yesterday afternoon. Sean McAdam of the Boston Herald says the Red Sox would have to be prepared to surrender Clay Buchholz and two other top prospects to acquire Halladay. Josh Beckett told Rob Bradford of WEEI.com that he'd like to pitch in the same rotation as Halladay, but thinks the Red Sox have enough talent to win...
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By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 8, 2009 at 4:42pm CST]
Everyone else says the Phillies are frontrunners for Roy Halladay, but what about the Phillies themselves? GM Ruben Amaro Jr. told MLB.com's Todd Zolecki that he has "flexibility" to add a stud pitcher. Though Amaro Jr. spoke only in general terms, the conversation was largely about Halladay. The Phillies say they won't part with all their prospects, even to acquire the ace the covet. Amaro Jr. said some of his players are untouchable even for the best player in baseball. Jason Knapp and Dominic Brown could be untouchables. As Scott Lauber reports, Charlie Manuel listed Kyle Drabek as an untouchable.
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By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 8, 2009 at 12:21pm CST]
Jon Heyman of SI.com reports that the Jays aren't likely to deal Roy Halladay within the AL East and will likely seek premium bats and shortstops in possible deals, since Marco Scutaro becomes a free agent after the season. Heyman hears that Halladay would likely be open to playing for most contenders. Here are some details and more rumors: The Jays had interest in Phillies shortstop prospect Jason Donald last year. Jays GM J.P. Ricciardi won't publicly rule out any destinations, but it would be much more bearable for the Jays and their fans to see Halladay pitching in the...
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By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 8, 2009 at 11:26am CST]
One source told Ed Price of MLB Fanhouse that "the Phillies are leaders at this point" in the Roy Halladay sweepstakes. However, that doesn't mean the Jays ace will be dealt. As another source points out, J.P. Ricciardi is not in a hurry to trade Halladay, so there's an equal chance he stays in Toronto. And the haul Halladay could bring? The Erik Bedard trade (Adam Jones, George Sherrill and others) and the Dan Haren trade (Carlos Gonzalez, Brett Anderson and others) could be benchmarks. Jon Heyman of SI.com heard from an executive who believes the Jays would hesitate to...
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By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 8, 2009 at 9:32am CST]
One of baseball's most talented and dependable pitchers is available for the right combination of talent. Here's a collection of Roy Halladay-themed rumors and thoughts from around the league: It's doubtful that the Jays would trade Halladay within the AL East and the Yankees wouldn't be likely to part with enough pieces to acquire him, a source told Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News. Seems to me that it's in the Jays' best interest to have many bidders involved, especially their AL East rivals, if only to boost the asking price for other clubs. Feinsand suggests Yankees fans...
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By Eddie Schmid [July 7, 2009 at 9:53pm CST]
GMs' phones must be ringing off the hook tonight, and most of the incoming calls are probably from your friendly neighborhood baseball beat writer. Let's scope out the latest news from Buster Olney: Olney has updated his previous post on the news, and gets word that Halladay might be open to waiving his no-trade clause. Olney goes on to say that since Halladay would depart after 2010 as a likely Type A, he will command two high draft choices. Thus, all trade offers would have to begin with such talent. Angels manager Mike Scioscia says GM Tony Reagins has talked...
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By Eddie Schmid [July 7, 2009 at 7:52pm CST]
Jayson Stark at ESPN says the Phillies are "exploring all possibilities" to shore up their rotation, and one of those possibilities has been Pedro Martinez, who they saw throw today. While manager Charlie Manuel didn't seem to indicate Pedro was the answer to the team's issues, a major-league source told Stark that "If [Pedro] throws well, they'll do something." The source, based in the Dominican Republic, goes on to say that the Phillies have already notified Martinez that they likely won't reach his demands of a $5MM prorated salary. Instead, they're shooting for an incentive-laden deal of some kind. Keep...
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By Eddie Schmid [July 7, 2009 at 6:19pm CST]
The baseball realm is a-twitter with the news that the Blue Jays will listen to offers on Roy Halladay. Let's run down the latest bullet points on this front: MLB.com's Jordan Bastian has a bevy of quotes from Roy himself: "It's a situation where I think if it's best for the team, if it's best for me, then you go from there." SI's Jon Heyman hears that the Jays may want a top SS prospect for the Doc, which could bode well for the Phillies, White Sox and Brewers, who all harbor chips in Jason Donald, Gordon Beckham and Alcides...
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